Boat construction



P. R. BROWN BOAT CONSTRUCTION A ril 15, 1969 Sheet of3 Filed July 20, 1967 lNVENTOR {55m PAUL R. BROWN Afro/ 5 3 April 15, 1969 P. R. BROWN BOAT CONSTRUCTION Filed July 20. 1967 FIG. 3

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INVENTOR PAUL R. BROWN By ?'mm &

A fforneys April 15, 1969 P. R. BROWN BOAT CONSTRUCTION Sheet of 3 Filed July 20, 1967 FIG. I]

lNVENTOR PAUL R. BROWN By jzm, 0%;

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United States Patent Office 3,438,073 Patented Apr. 15, 1969 3,438,073 BOAT CONSTRUCTION Paul R. Brown, Barrington, 111., assignor to Seal Basin Marine Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Illinois Filed July 20, 1967, Ser. No. 654,808 Int. Cl. 1363b 19/14, 35/72, 43/00 US. Cl. 9-1 15 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Background of the invention The use of small craft in pleasure boating has been greatly expanded. In pleasure boating, it is desirable for the boat to have a cockpit extending the full length of the boat in many instances when the boat is used for play. The present construction of most pleasure boats is such that the boat has a forward deck positioned between the windshield and the bow so that that portion of the boat is no more than dead storage space. This dead storage space cuts off four or five feet of available cockpit space in a boat. There are certain boat constructions wherein there is no forward deck to give use of the full length of the boat. However, these boats may not be used in rough water or in heavy seas because the water may come over the bow and swamp the boat. Thus, the completely open boats have a rather limited use to waters which are calm, and of course, the boat may not be used when there is a brisk breeze which creates a heavy chop of the water or when there is heavy rain.

In the prior art, there are boat constructions which utilize a door or a hatch in the forward deck of the boat to allow either ingress or egress to the boat through the bow portion of the boat or to facilitate handling of an anchor. However, these doors or hatches do not allow the full length of the boat to be used as a cockpit.

In small craft, and especially, pleasure craft, the use of a canvas or other flexible top is accepted to provide a convertible boat. The canvas top presents problems in that during a heavy rain, the canvas top often develops leaks and the canvas or other fabric top usually begins to wear after a seasons use so that the top must be repaired or replaced with a relatively high degree of frequency. Furthermore, the deficiencies in the fabric tops are usually not noted until a heavy rain storm when they are needed the most.

Summary of the invention The subject invention relates to an improved boat construction wherein the boat is conventional in that it includes a hull having a bow and a stern. A windshield is mounted on the hull and a removable forward deck is mounted on the hull and extends between the bow and the windshield. The forward deck is releasably secured to the hull by a plurality of fastening means so that the removable forward deck may be readily positioned and secured to the hull when required in heavy seas or during inclement weather. However, the removable deck may be readily released from the hull and stored in a compartment in the boat so that the cockpit of the boat extends the full length of the boat.

A principal object of the instant invention is to provide an improved construction for a small craft wherein the boat is safe for use in heavy seas, but may be readily and conveniently converted to a boat having a cockpit extending the full length of the boat for use in relatively calm water.

It is another object of the herein-disclosed invention to provide an improved boat construction wherein the boat includes a rigid convertible top wherein the top may be readily and conveniently removed and stored in the boat, and which top requires a minimum of maintenance.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide an improved boat construction wherein the boat may be adapted for multiple uses.

Other objects and uses of the instant invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon a perusal of the following specification in light of the accompanying drawings.

Brief description of the drawings FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a boat embodying the instant invention showing a removable forward deck and a removable top mounted on the boat;

FIGURE 2 is identical to FIGURE 1 but shows the forward deck and the top removed from the boat and the deck and the top are shown in an exploded phantom view about the boat;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 2, showing a top panel and a deck panel positioned in a storage compartment and a second top panel and a second deck panel shown in an attitude for positioning in a second storage compartment;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged plan view of a fragmentary portion of the bow portion of the boat shown in FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a portion of the top frame showing a top support arm connected to the frame and the top support arm is shown in a support position in phantom view;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view of the deck panels taken on line 66 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 7-7 of FIGURE 4, showing a toggle deck fastener holding a forward deck panel in a position and the toggle deck fastener is shown in an unlocked attitude in phantom view;

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 8-8 of FIGURE 4, showing a panel releasably secured to a portion of the top frame by a toggle top fastener;

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 9-9 of FIGURE 4, showing a stern end of a top panel;

FIGURE 10 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line 10-10 of FIGURE 4, showing a portion of a forward deck panel in engagement with a portion of a bulkhead; and

FIGURE 11 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line l111 of FIGURE 4, showing a portion of a forward deck panel in engagement with a hinged section of the windshield.

Description of the preferred embodiment Referring now to the drawings, and especially to FIG- URE 1, a boat generally indicated by numeral 20 shows a preferred embodiment of the instant invention. The boat 20 generally includes a hull 22, having a bow portion 1 and a gunwale, a rear cockpit 24 having its outer edges parallel to the gunwale, with a pair of seats 26 mounted therein, and a stern portion 27. A windshield 28 is mounted on the hull. Connected to the windshield is a top frame 3%. The boat has a forward cockpit 32 forward of the windshield and extending to the bow portion. A removable forward deck 34 is releasably secured to the hull and extends between the windshield and the bow portion. A removable top 36 is connected to the top frame and the windshield to cover a portion of cockpit 24 and seats 26.

Referring now to FIGURE 3, it may be seen that in this instance the hull 22 is a molded plastic construction, though any other well known construction may be used. The hull includes a bottom 38 with a starboard side 40 and a port side 42 formed integral with the bottom. An upper cockpit frame 44 is secured to the lower portion of the hull by conventional means. A bumper 46 is secured to the hull to provide a peripheral bumper for the boat.

A starboard storage compartment 48 and a port storage compartment 50 for holding the forward deck and the top are positioned on opposite sides of the cockpit aft seats 26. Formed integral with the bottom and the starboard side 40 is an interior starboard compartment wall 52, and formed integral with the port side 42 and the bottom is an interior port compartment wall 54. The starboard compartment includes a lid 56 which has a seat portion 58 and a lid side 60. The lid 56 is connected to a lid support 62 by means of a hinge 64. The lid support 62 is secured to cockpit frame 44. The port cornpartment includes a lid 66 which has a seat portion 68 and a lid side 70. The lid 66 is attached to a lid support 72 through a hinge 74, which lid support 72 is also secured to the cockpit frame. The seat portions 58 and 68 are on the same plane as rear cockpit seats 76 which are secured to the hull.

Formed integral with the hull is a forward bulkhead 78 which has a passage 80 formed therein. A windshield ledge 82 is formed integral with the bulkhead 78 and provides a support for a portion of Windshield 28. The forward cockpit 32 extends from bulkhead 78 to the bow of the hull and has forward cockpit seats 84 positioned therein.

The windshield 28 includes a starboard post 86 and a port post 88, which posts are fixed to the cockpit frame. Connecting the posts 86 and 88 is a windshield 'beam 90. The windshield includes starboard glass section 92 which is sealingly connected to the starboard post 86, beam 90 and windshield ledge 82, and a port glass section 94 which is connected to the beam 90, port post 88 and windshield ledge 82. A pivot window section 96 is hingedly mounted on beam 90 between sections 92 and 94, so that the window 96 may be selectively raised, as will be described hereinafter.

The top frame 30 includes a starboard pedestal 98 and a port pedestal 100, both of which pedestals are mounted on the hull. A starboard side beam 102 connects the upper portion of pedestal 98 with post 86 of the windshield. A port side beam 104 connects the upper portion of the pedestal 100 with post 88. A port cantilever top support arm 106 is hingedly connected to pedestal 100, and a starboard cantilever top support arm 108 is hingedly connected to pedestal 98.

Looking now to FIGURES 2 and 7, it may be seen that the cockpit frame includes an integral forward cockpit outer ridge 110. The forward cockpit outer ridge has a parapet 112 formed integral therewith and a seal seat 114 adjacent to the parapet. Mounted within the ridge 110 is a wooden fastener support 116. As may be seen in FIGURES 2 and 10, the windshield ledge has a ledge ridge 118 formed integral therewith which blends into the parapet 112 for reasons which will become apparent hereinafter. Looking now to FIGURE 11, it may be seen that the pivot window section 6 includes a trough 120 to receive a portion of the forward deck for reasons which Will become apparent hereinafter.

The removable forward deck 34 includes a starboard deck panel 122 and a port deck panel 124. The outer periphery of both deck panels is identical except for periphery of 'both deck panels is identical except for that portion where the panels join, as will be described in detail hereinafter. The forward deck panels are molded of a suitable plastic material with a pair of support ribs 126 formed integral therewith. Adjacent to the outer periphery of the panels, a wooden fastener bar 128 is molded into each of the panels.

As was mentioned above, the outer periphery of each of the panels 122 and 124, which is adapted for engagement with the cockpit frame, is identical in construction to each other. As is seen in FIGURE 7, the outer periphery includes a seal portion 130. The seal portion includes a seal parapet 132 and an elastomer seal 134 is adhesively secured to the parapet for engagement with the parapet 112 and seal seat 114.

A plurality of releasable toggle deck fasteners 136 holds the panels into engagement with the forward cockpit outer ridge 110. Each of the fasteners 136 includes an eye 138 which is fixed to the respective panel and the bar 128. An elongated hook 140 releasably engages the eye 138 at one end and the other end of the hook is pivotally connected to a handle 142. The handle is pivotally connected to a bracket 144 which is fixed to the forward cockpit outer ridge 110 and the wooden fastener support 116. Both of the forward deck panels 122 and 124- include a stern lip 146, which may be best seen in FIGURES 10 and 11. An elastomer seal 147 is secured to lip 146 to provide a seal between the panels and the ledge 82 and trough 120.

As was mentioned above, the panels 122 and 124 sealingly engage each other, as is best seen in FIGURE 6. The port panel 124 includes an elongated seal trough 148 which defines one edge of the panel. The starboard panel 122 includes an elongated sealing edge 150 which defines an outer edge of panel 122. Adhesively secured to the sealing edge is an elastomer seal 152 which is positioned in sealing engagement with trough 148, so that there is a seal between the two panels when positioned over the forward cockpit 32.

As may be seen in FIGURES 1 and 4, the top 36 includes a starboard top panel 154 and a port top panel 156, which have recessed portions in order to provide a head recess 158. The construction of the top panels 154 and 156 is similar to the deck panels 122 and 124. Top panels 154 and 156 are also made of a molded rigid plastic and include support ribs 160 which are similar to support ribs 126. The panels 154 and 156 sealingly engage each other in the same manner in which panels 122 and 124 sealingly engage each other. As may be seen in FIGURE 8, the panel 156 has a seal portion 162 which has a wooden fastener bar 164 molded into the panel adjacent to the seal portion. The seal portion includes a parapet 166 and a seal base 168. Adhesively secured to the seal base is an elastomer seal strip 170 which is engageable with the port side beam 104 to form a seal therebetween. The parapet 166 engages the outer side of the beam 104 to hold the panel in a lateral direction. The construction of panel 154 is a mirror image of the construction of panel 156 described herein.

The panels 154 and 156 are releasably secured to the top frame by a plurality of releasable toggle top fasteners 172. The toggle top fasteners are similar in construction to fasteners 136. Each toggle top fastener 172 includes an eye 174 which is fixed to seal portion 162 and bar 164. An elongated hook 176 engages eye 174 and the hook is connected to a handle 178. The handle is pivotally connected to a bracket 180, which bracket 180 is fixed to the beam 104.

The stern portion of the panels 154 and 156 is shown in FIGURE 9 and includes a stern lip 182. As was mentioned above, the panels 154 and 156 sealingly engage each other in the same manner that panels 122 and 124 engage each other. The panel 156 includes a seal trough 184 similar to seal trough 148 of panel 124. The starboard top panel 154 includes a seal lip 186 which is similar to seal lip 150 of starboard deck panel 122. Adhesively secured to the seal lip is an elastomer seal strip 188 which is similar to seal strip 152 so that when the panels 154 and 156 are mounted into engagement with the top frame the seal strip 188 is positioned in trough 184 to form a seal between the two panels.

As was mentioned above, the boat 20 may be modified to be used as three different types of boats. The first boat may be that such as shown in FIGURE 2 wherein the boat is used as a completely open cockpit boat. The boat 20 is used in this particular form when the weather is clear and the water is relatively calm. The forward cockpit 32 may be used by passengers for play or simply riding in front of the windshield.

In the event that the water should become rough, the operator may simply install the forward deck 34 over the cockpit. The forward deck is installed by first removing the panel 124 from the storage compartment and placing the panel into position on the forward cockpit outer ridge 110. The panel is placed into position and the hooks 140 of fasteners 136 are positioned in their respective eyes 138 and the handle 142 is pulled down so that the elastomer seal 134 is compressed between the parapet 132 and the seal seat 114 to provide a watertight seal between the panel and the cockpit frame. Next, the panel 122 is removed from storage compartment 48 and placed on the forward cockpit outer ridge 110. The panel 122 is positioned so that the seal lip 150 with the elastomer seal 152 is positioned in trough 148 of panel 124 and the seal portion 130 is positioned relative to the outer ridge 110, as described in connection with panel 124. The fasteners are then secured and locked so that the starboard panel is locked into position. The stern lips 146 of the panels are positioned in engagement with windshield ledge 82 and in sealing engagement therewith. The seal lips also engage the trough 120 which is connected to the pivot window 96.

With the forward deck 34 in place, the forward portion of the boat is sealed and is safe for use in rough water. The portion under the forward deck may be used for storage or in larger boats, the forward portion may be used as a sleeping area.

In order to remove the forward deck, the fasteners 136 are released by raising the handle and disengaging hook 140 from eye 138. The panels are simply lifted off the frame and are stored in the respective storage cornpartments.

In the event that the operator of boat 20 wishes to have a roof over a portion of the cockpit, the top 36 may be mounted on the top frame 30. The top 36 is mounted on the top frame 30 in much the same manner that the forward deck is mounted on the cockpit frame. First the port panel 156 is mounted on the frame and fasteners 172 are utilized to secure the panel to the frame and form a seal therebetween. As may be seen in FIG- URE 8, the panel carries seal 170 which engages the frame so that a water-tight seal is formed between the panel and the frame. After the port panel is in position, the starboard panel 154 is also mounted and the port panel includes the trough 184 which receives the seal lip 186 and seal 188 to form a seal between the two panels when the starboard is locked into position. With the top on, a second type of boating is available to the user; that is, the boat has a partially covered stern cockpit and an open forward cockpit. This particular arrangement may be desirable for a party wherein the group includes varying ages in which some people may not wish to be in the sun.

The removal of the top from the frame is a simple operation wherein the fasteners 172 are released so that the panels 154 and 156 are simply lifted from the top frame and placed in the respective storage compartments.

The boat 20 may also be used as shown in FIGURE 1, wherein the forward deck is mounted over the forward cockpit and the top 36 is mounted on the top frame so that the boat is substantially enclosed.

It may be seen that when the forward deck 34 is removed, passengers may pass to and fro between the stern and forward cockpits through the passage in bulkhead 78. In order to provide greater head room, window section 96 may be raised so that the passenger need not crawl under the windshield.

From the foregoing, it may be seen that the boat 20 may be used in three different ways to give, in effect, three different boats, depending upon the particular situation.

Although the foregoing description has been .in terms of a pleasure boat, it is readily apparent that the boat may be used as a commercial or fishing boat and the advantages of the three forms would be readily apparent.

Although a specific embodiment of the herein-disclosed invention has been shown and described in detail above, it is readily apparent that those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the instant invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A boat comprising, in combination, a hull having a bow portion and a gunwale, a windshield mounted on said hull adjacent to the bow portion, a removable forward deck mounted on the hull, a cockpit extending between the bow portion and the windshield and having outer edges parallel to the gunwale, and deck fastening means releasably securing the removable forward deck to the hull outwardly of the cockpit, whereby the removable forward deck may be selectively removed to allow free use of said cockpit forward of the windshield.

2. A boat as defined in claim 1, including a storage compartment connected to the hull, wherein the storage compartment is adapted to receive and to store the removable forward deck.

3. A boat as defined in claim 1, including a top frame mounted on the hull, a removable top mounted on the top frame, and top fastening means for releasably securing the top to the top frame, whereby the top may be selectively removed.

4. A boat as defined in claim 3, wherein the top includes a pair of rigid top panels which may be separately removed from the top frame.

5. A boat as defined in claim 4, including a seal between the top panels for sealing the space therebetween to prevent water from entering through the space.

6. A boat as defined in claim 3, including a pair of top support arms mounted on the top frame and engageable with the top to support the top.

7. A boat as defined in claim 3, including a storage compartment connected to said hull and being adapted to receive and to hold the removable forward deck and the removable top.

8. A boat as defined in claim 3, wherein the removable forward deck includes a pair of panels which may be separately removed from the hull, a seal between said panels to seal closed the space between the panels when the panels are mounted on the hull, and an outer seal for sealing the outer edge of each of the panels.

9. A boat as defined in claim 3, wherein the removable forward deck includes a pair of rigid deck panels which may be separately removed from the hull.

10. A boat as defined in claim 1, wherein the removable forward deck includes a pair of deck panels which may be separately removed from the hull.

11. A boat as defined in claim 10, including a seal between said deck panels to seal closed the space between the panels when the panels are mounted on the hull, and an outer seal for sealing the outer edge of each of the panels.

12. A boat as defined in claim 11, including atop frame mounted on the hull, a removable top mounted on the top frame, top fastening means for releasably securing the top to the top frame, and a pair of top support arms mounted on the top frame and engageable with the top to support the top.

13. A boat as defined in claim 1, including a bulkhead 7 connected to the hull and positioned in supporting engagement with the windshield, said bulkhead being split to allow free passage through the bulkhead, and said windshield havinga hinged section which may be raised to allow free passage from and to the bow portion of the hull.

14. A boat as defined in claim 2, including a top frame mounted on the hull, a removable top mounted on the top frame, said removable top including a pair of rigid top panels which may be separately removed from the top frame, and top fastening means for releasably securing the top panels to the top frame, whereby the top panels may be selectively removed.

15. A boat as defined in claim 2, wherein the removable forward deck includes a pair of rigid deck panels which may be separately removed from the hull, a seal between said deck panels to seal closed the space between the deck panels when the deck panels are mounted on the hull, an outer seal for sealing the outer edge of each of the deck panels, a top frame mounted on the hull, a removable top mounted on the top frame, said top including a pair of rigid top panels which may be separately removed from the top frame, a top seal between the top panels for seal ing the space therebetween to prevent water from entering through the space, top fastening means for releasably securing the top panels to the top frame, a pair of top support arms mounted on the top frame and engageable with the top to support one end of the top, and a storage compartment connected to the hull wherein the storage 9/1962 Beach 9 'l TRYGVE M. BLIX, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

